Fading Stars
by Silver Snow on Mountain Peak
Summary: Times are good for SkyClan and OakClan. They are at peace with each other, and there are no foxes, badgers or other enemies. Leaf-bare is approaching, but it's still warm and prey is running. All is peaceful. But when Leaf-bare finally arrives, it'll be much worse than the Clans could imagine. And now it's time to ask: how much will it take for the Clans' faith in StarClan to fade.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! Welcome to my new story.**

**This story will be a bit slow at the beginning (just like my other stories), but it will hopefully get more action-full in the future. The name of this story might seem unconnected to the story at first, but you'll understand that, too, in the future.**

**The story will be told in first person by Stormkit, I might add in other POV in the future.**

**N'joy**

Chapter 1

Stormkit was up at the crack of dawn; her usual time. Some cats wondered whyshe did it. She never really answered her friends' pesky enquiries, preferring to shrug and let the conversation move on. It was easier then actually telling them, though she knew that sharing was key to friendships.

Not that she didn't share things; stories from the elders, jokes and puns she thought of or picked up from somewhere, the kind of prey she liked. But obviously, none of those are private, intimate; anything that will actually allow them to understand her better.

Stormkit got up, carefully jumping and skirting around Blazekit who was shifting and turning in his sleep, and Swiftkit, still as a boulder, dark gray chest rising and falling slowly. She didn't want to wake them. Swiftkit's paw shot out suddenly and snagged her tail. Stormkit hissed and leaped backwards, freeing her tail from her brother's claws.

_Maybe not like a boulder, _she thought once she was out of the Nursery, rubbing the small scratch on her silver tail._ I've never heard of rocks that move of their own accord._

A slight breeze ruffled her fur, fresh and cold. The sky was still a dark blue, though only a few stars could be seen, and they were ever so slowly fading away. Far in the horizon streaks of pale orange and red marked the place where the sun would soon rise. Stormkit loved this hour, when everything was silent save from the occasional bird chirps and the rustling of the leaves, and of course, _snoring. _She loved the cleanness of the air, the coolness on her pelt, the faint light that washed everything in soft colors.

A large yawn escaped her jaws. Stormkit shook her head vigorously and padded up to the small pool of water in the center of camp. It wasn't much of pool now, just a small, murky puddle, gathered up in the lowest ground. The banks were cracked and dry, coated with dead reed-beds. Many hot, rainless and sunshine-filled days did that to water.

Stormkit padded down the slope into the center and dipped her muzzle into the muddy water. Despite that, it was cool and washed her sleepiness away. She looked up at the Gathering Stone. A large, gray boulder, its edge poking out of the center of the pond; at least it theoretically did. Now it just seemed awkward and out of place with the water slushing slowly around its bottom. It's strange how these things work, but now that the whole stone was visible, it seemed somehow smaller and less impressive.

_Time to do something. _

Stormkit flicked droplets from her whiskers and then stretched her muscles quickly. She ran through the list of things she usually did in these early mornings. _Eat… Nah I'm not hungry. I don't feel like going back to sleep either. I can collect soft moss and feathers for Mother's nest, or maybe for the elders; they always appreciate it. Or that I can go to the forest, yes that sounds nice. _Stormkit stared above the camp walls, where a thick forest covered the gently sloping ground. She'd been out there several times before, once she realized that no cat would catch her if she left early enough in the morning and made sure to return after the dawn patrol left and before anyone else got up. There were no guards at night because everything was safe; they were at peace with SkyClan, no rogues and loners had been seen wandering around for moons, and the territory was clear of foxes, badgers and rats. At least Stormkit had heard so from the warriors.

Breaking the rules did make her feel a little guilty, but she enjoyed it too much, and anyway, in a moon or so she will have no choice _but _to go out, so what difference does it make? Besides, the rule was made because it could be dangerous for young cats to wander around on their own; that wasn't relevant right now; not when it was so safe.

Stormkit got up and made her way around the Gathering Stone, towards the camp's entrance.

"Where are you going?"

Stormkit jumped in surprise and guilt and turned around. To her horror, the cat talking to her was no other then Pinestar, the Clan leader.

"Um… I was ju- ju-just…" Stormkit didn't know what she was trying to say. Just what? Just trying to sneak out of camp against the rules? Just walking to the entrance, but no, I'm not trying to go out though it very much seems like it? She hadn't expected to be seen by anyone, _especially _Pinestar. Just her luck; the first direct conversation with her leader was about her rule breaking while she was stammering.

She always stuttered when nervous.

"Trying to get out of camp," Pinestar nodded, completing the sentence she wouldn't.

Stormkit forced herself to meet his gaze calmly, though her muscles were tensing and her claws were digging into the soil. After a moment she found herself calming down as she spotted a spark of amusement in Pinestar's eyes.

"Well then, come on," he mewed, indicating with his tail towards the Nursery. "Maybe you should go get some more sleep."

Stormkit narrowed her eyes, once again surprised. "Um… I'm not in trouble?"

"Not this time. Just don't let me _catch _you trying again. You are not the first kit, nor the last, who has tried to leave."

"O-okay." Stormkit was even more confused now. Was it just her imagination, or did he put emphasis on _catch, _meaning she could go out again, as long as _he_ didn't see her? "I'm not tired," she said quickly when she realized he was expecting her to go back to the Nursery.

"Then would you like to learn something? How about tree climbing?"

"Fine," Stormkit shuffled her legs in embarrassment, though her ears perked up in interest.

Pinestar got looked around camp, and finally indicated for her to join him near a small and rather bare tree. She got up and walked to him on what seemed like legs made of sand, suddenly wishing she had gone to the Nursery instead.

"Climbing is less dangerous when there are less leaves," he explained the reason for his choice. "It's very easy to mistaken a thick cluster of leaves for a branch, so this way it's safer for beginners." He nodded towards the tree he had chosen.

_The tree also has many intertwining branches, _Stormkit noted to herself. _That, too, should make it easier._

"Now, climbing up is quite simple; getting down is the hard part. That's why you should never climb up higher than you can just jump down, unless you're confident in your skills or that there's someone there to rescue you if needed. Understand?"

Stormkit nodded and he continued.

"That's a very common beginners' mistake. They climb up to the top, and then are stuck there, because they have no idea how to get down. Give it a try," he said, nodding at the tree.

"Umm, okay," she mewed awkwardly, a bit surprised that he expected her to climb already, and also somehow wishing she could try it alone, without her Clan leader watching and scrutinizing her every step. She padded closer to the tree.

"You didn't exactly tell me what to do," she pointed out.

He smiled. "I know. That's part of the challenge, and it's also mostly instinct. No need to explain so carefully."

_Great. Real help. Doesn't tell me anything except what not to do._

Stormkit leaped at the tree in annoyance, unsheathing her claws midair. She tried grabbing onto it and digging her claws in, but she hit the bark with too much force and was thrown back. She landed heavily on the dry ground, and a cloud of dust filled the air. Stormkit sneezed and got up, shaking sand from her fur. Her shoulder ached from the impact.

"Maybe that's enough for now," said Pinestar, catching her wince of pain. "Smallfeather is going to murder if she knew I let you try to climb."

Stormkit found it slightly funny that the powerful Clan leader was scared of Smallfeather's sharp tongue, just like the rest of the Clan. But she was still annoyed at herself for doing something so stupid. She wanted to succeed, to show Pinestar that she would make a good warrior. "One more time?" she begged.

"Fine," agreed Pinestar after slight hesitation. "But no telling Smallfeather."

Stormkit nodded. _Why approach the medicine cat when there's no need to?_

"And just to the first branch," he added.e no "When you climb, only unsheathe your front claws," he instructed. "You'll need your back paws for propelling upwards. Try it."

Stormkit stepped towards the tree, taking a deep breath to calm herself down. She was going to do this right. She reached up, leaning against the tree trunk for balance, and sunk her front claws in. She looked at Pinestar uncertainly.

"That's it. Use your back paws."

Stormkit pushed up, using the ground. She started moving up the tree, freeing her claws, one paw at a time, from the bark, and then sinking them into a higher part of the tree. She moved slowly at first, still hesitant, but soon she gained confidence and was moving quickly skyward.

She reached the second branch before Pinestar had time to tell her to stop. "Come down now," he told her. He looked a little annoyed.

The descent was much slower, but she was no longer scared, and before she knew it she was touching the ground again, facing Pinestar. She was panting, out of breath but still excited

"Pretty good for a first time," he mewed. "But next time try to listen to what I tell you."

"Thanks," Stormkit mewed. Her shoulders, especially the one that was hit before, were sore, and so were her back legs. She knew it would be worse later on.

"Why don't you go back to the Nursery? You must be tired."

The excitement was fading, and she was starting to feel self-conscious. "F-Fine."

Stormkit turned her back on her leader and started padding towards the Nursery. She was sure she could feel his eyes on her back, but when she couldn't bear it any longer and turned around to check, he was nowhere in sight. A couple other cats were in the clearing, presumably the dawn patrol that returned, and the other early risers.

She reached the Nursery, and Blazekit was just getting up.

"Hi," he said when he saw her. "Why are you such a mess?"

Stormkit shrugged. "I went fishing and fell into the lake."

Blazekit stared at her for moment. "We don't have a lake in our territory."

"How would you know? You've never taken a step out of camp, let alone explore the territory."

"Because that's what the _entire _Clan says. Why would I believe you over them?"

Stormkit shrugged again. "I don't know. Anyway, I wasn't trying to claim that we have a lake in our territory. I went fishing outside the territory."

"Yeah, right. Anyway, if you would have fallen into the lake you would've been dripping water."

"_That's _what bothers you about my story?" Stormkit snorted. "Not everything else? Like, how didn't I get caught, or how did I even get there so quickly, I mean you saw me right before you went to sleep, and that was pretty late. I wouldn't have made it there and back. Besides the fact that it would have been something pretty stupid to do."

"So what did you really do?" he asked, ignoring her rant.

"Learned to climb. Pinestar taught me."

"I'm not going to fall for that, you know," Blazekit mewed, narrowing his eyes. "I'm not _that _stupid."

"No, I really did. I'm telling the truth. I promise."

"What did you do?" That was Swiftkit.

"Learned to climb with Pinestar," Stormkit mewed. "Why are you awake so early?"

"With you two arguing? How _am _I supposed to sleep?"

"Well, while you two were sleeping, _I _learned something useful," she teased, and then yawned. "I think I'll go to sleep."

"Well, while _you _go to sleep _we're _going to do something else," returned Swiftkit.

"Ah," mumbled Stormkit as she curled up in the nest. "But _you _aren't going to do anything useful with your time."


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello!**

**I've decided to change the plot a bit, so now there will be another POV (and no, he's not in the Clans and doesn't live in the mountains, as you'll see soon enough.)**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, favorited, followed and read.**

Thunder stood on the slightly raised Silver-Stone, leaning forward on his forepaws, gazing down at the small waterfall which didn't exactly merit the title 'waterfall'; it was just a tiny trickle down the spiky gray stones. White foam rained on him gently, cool and fresh. It gathered up to large, quivering drops at the end of his whiskers. The Silver-Stone was cold and smooth as ever; the sun, even on the hottest summer days couldn't reach this spot, it was too well protected by the small grove of birch trees. The stone's name was justified. In full moon nights, like this one, the large, light gray stone would light up in bright silver.

The waterfall fell gently, with a soft gurgling whisper, into a smooth, small pool; so still that it looked tonight like a silver sheet of ice, disturbed only by the stray leaf that drifted from the tall birch tree above. Red and gold leaves, he could tell, even in the moonlight which seemed to drain everything of its color, a very obvious sign of autumn. Thunder shivered as a cold breeze ruffled his fur_. Seems like the summer is finally over. It's probably going to snow in the next moon, the birch trees will be covered in a white layer, to match their trunks. The ground will be white too, maybe the pool will freeze again; it did last winter. And I won't be here to see it, any of it._

Now, most cats, when that sort of thought ran through their head, would probably need to swallow a knot in their throat, maybe take a deep breath and try to cheer themselves up with something else, happier, tell themselves that it doesn't matter, they'll be back soon or even wipe away a hidden tear.

Not Thunder. Yes, he loved his family, cared for the rest, especially Lavender, but he has been waiting too long to feel sad about what he was leaving behind. He had wanted to explore the outside world, the _real _one, for too long. To get out of this prison, which, yes, was filled with easy prey and beautiful scenes and loving family and apparent happiness. Thunder was never truly happy here; he just found it boring. He hated the dull routine, despised just repeating the previous days' actions, again and again and again, every day of his life.

That was the reason he had decided to go on the Journey. The Journey was an old custom, which was created when Thunder's, and most of the other cats', ancestors came to live together in this place. It was used to test the cats once they reached fifteen moons, and check if they're ready and deserving to become full members of the group. Originally the leader at the time would give the cat going on the Journey a quest, some kind of mission that was supposed to be completed in three months. It could be anything; from finding new territory to recruiting another cat or dealing with a different, unfriendly group of cats. This was not risk free; a lot of the cats died or were injured permanently and incapable of completing the mission. More then half of the cats never returned, and as a result the group's numbers didn't grow. A few seasons later the leader at the time decided that every cat should be allowed to do it when they felt ready, since not all cats grew and matured at the same pace. Cats continued to go on the Journey, and many of them died or were kicked out when they were unable to complete their quest.

A while later a she-cat named Ice, famous for her beauty and kindness, become leader of the group. She decided that that custom was cruel, though not pointless. The cats still did need some kind of test that would motivate them. After long arguments and full days spent on thinking she managed to change the law, and now the Journey-er, as the cat going on the quest was nicknamed, didn't need to complete a mission but instead just survive for three moons and then return. Journey-ers still died, but a much smaller percent, and there was no kicking out the cats who failed their mission. In this case if you failed, you were dead.

Just recently the law was changed again, in fact, just a little while after Thunder was born. Now any cat who didn't want to go on the Journey didn't have to.

"Thunder." That was Lavender. The she-cat was standing at the edge of the Silver-Stone, gray fur looking as sleek and soft as ever, clean and neatly arranged around her slim frame. Her remarkably beautiful purple-blue, heather colored eyes were staring at him with an expression he could only understand as longing.

"Hello," he greeted her, though not as happily as it could be. He didn't want company right now. Oh well, after all, he probably won't have a chance to have another private conversation with her for a long time, so it was now or never.

Lavender padded forward and rubbed her cheek with his. "How are you? Feeling fine?"

Thunder nodded.

"You seem nervous to me," she decided. "You'll be fine, you know. You're one of the best fighters we've had for a while, and you're not bad at hunting either."

She was obviously trying to convince herself more than she was trying to convince him, and besides, he didn't need convincing. He was excited, not nervous as she had thought. _Her worries might have something to do with the fact that the last three who went on the Journey had never returned, _he thought dryly. _And all of them were considered 'good fighters' and 'successful hunters'._

Lavender sighed very dramatically, leaped onto the stone and sat down beside him. Thunder felt his annoyance growing as she inched towards him. _Why can't she see that I want to be alone?_

He immediately felt ashamed with himself. _What's wrong with her wanting to hang out with me, when I'm about to leave her?_

"Autumn's here," she mewed quietly, eyes fixed on the birch tree.

Thunder nodded. "Yes, that's what I was thinking beforehand."

"Why do you have to go?" she suddenly burst out. It was obvious she had been waiting to say that.

"It's tradition." Thunder didn't meet her eyes. Instead he gazed down again at the trickling waterfall.

"But I'm not going and I don't think I'm ever going to go. You don't have to go; no one's forcing you. It hasn't been obligatory for a long time now."

"It's still an honor," Thunder answered shortly. There was no way he was going to tell her the truth; that he _wants _to leave her and his family.

"Oh, come on!" She mewed, her voice raising a little. Thunder heard her take in a deep breath and then felt her tail on his tail. "No one _cares _about this anymore, almost no one goes. Thunder, just look at me for a second," she pleaded. Thunder averted his eyes from the water and looked at her. Her eyes were wide, her tail was now moving up and down, hitting his tail repeatedly. "Listen to me."?

"I'm listening." He knew he was being heartless, but he couldn't stop himself. She was just getting on his nerves right now.

"Why do you want to go?" Lavender mewed. "And don't give me that garbage about it being tradition and that it's an honor. I _know_ you don't care about tradition, and you can be respected without going on it. I mean, Glass became leader, and he didn't go on the Journey. _Why_ do you want to go?" she repeated.

Thunder decided to go for the half-truth tactic. "Haven't you ever felt like you're missing something here, that you are just bored, and accomplishing practically nothing?"

"Um, not exactly."

_And that, my dear Lavender, is one of the reasons you sometimes get on my nerves. How can someone be so content with what they have? I know most cats think this place is perfect, but we obviously don't have the same definition for perfect. My version of perfect, for instance, doesn't necessarily include 'a lot of prey'._

Thunder shook his head. "Well then I'm sorry, but you won't understand the way I feel."

"I know I don't," she mewed sadly. "If I would, I would probably come with you, because I would feel like you do. You know," she added suddenly. "I was thinking of coming with you, just so I would get to be with you until… whenever."

Thunder didn't answer; he didn't know what to say.

"Well, I think I'll go to sleep. You should get some rest too; you're going to be leaving early tomorrow."

"Good night, Lavender."

"'Night."

Thunder woke up the next day in a sudden, jerky twitch. His eyes flew open and he almost immediately got to his legs. A strange feeling was cursing through his body, his insides felt like dirt, weighing him down, and as much as he told himself that he wasn't leaving anything behind and that he was happy to leave, he couldn't shake off the slight feeling of loss.

_What does that mean, 'I'm not leaving anything behind?' What are my family? Yes, they do annoy me, irritate me on a daily basis. I find their opinions on most matters completely idiotic and certainly despise many aspects of their… personality. But I still do love them. Somehow._

_I wouldn't give my life for them or anything like that, or at least not because they are family, but I still care for them, and I know they care for me, even if I am the 'weirdo' of the group._

Thunder sighed and jumped down soundlessly beside the waterfall. His muscles were aching from sleeping on the cold stone. He couldn't exactly remember when he had fallen asleep, he had just sort of drifted away into the blackness, his thoughts becoming foggier and foggier.

Thunder dipped a paw into the pool and a small shiver went through his body at the icy water's touch. His reflection was very clear in the small pool, obviously it had something to do with the fact that it was completely still, but today it was even sharper than usual. His bright golden fur was looking ruffled and messy, standing out against his black ears and paws, black striped tail and slightly lighter muzzle. Thunder smoothed out his fur with a couple rough licks and then got up and made his way back to the cave.

The sun still hasn't risen completely, the mountains in the horizon were a watery blue. The air was cold, the clean, fresh coldness of morning air. Fluffy light gray clouds made their way across the pale pink and blue sky, moving with the wind.

He pushed his way through the crack in the prickly bramble wall.

Thunder entered the cave, attempting to be as quiet as possible. The cave was pretty much the place the group did everything (except hunting); they slept there, they ate, hang out and battle trained (though that training was never used as there were no battles).

It was divided into three main parts, and dead bramble thickets separated them. The first was a large, semi-circular shape, close to the cave entrance. There was a large hole in the ceiling that let light and air in, and half a dozen other, smaller ones, scattered throughout the cave. This area was used mostly for eating, hanging around or group discussions. It was quite pleasant even in the winter, in the parts that there were no 'windows' to let in rain and wind. The term windows is one he learned from Lavender, who had a kittypet background. Most of the cats were somehow related or used to be a kittypet, so that a lot of terms were adopted from the Twoleg language.

There were two holes in the thorn barrier surrounding that part. One of them led to a sandy, stone surrounded, much smaller area. The ceiling there had collapsed entirely. In the summer and spring this place was ideal for practicing or training, but in the winter it got muddy and large puddles formed.

The third part was divided into many sub-parts, and in the hollows in the walls were many mossy nests where the cats slept; usually the queens slept together, and so did most of the younger cats, but otherwise it was pretty mixed.

Thunder clambered to the sleeping area and padded to his nest. He could see Lavender, who slept quite close to him, curled up in her nest, tail resting on her pink nose.

Thunder sighed as he remembered their previous conversation. He hadn't meant to hurt her, though he was quite sure he had. Maybe he'll apologize tomorrow, so he can leave with a whole heart. After all, Lavender is the cat he will miss most.

Yes, he'll do that tomorrow. But right now he should get some sleep. Tomorrow is a big day. Thunder turned over in his nest and soon fell asleep.

**I hope that was fine. Anyway, please review and tell me what you think.**

**Oh, and I forgot. I have most of the allegiances for OakClan, but I still need a full Clan's worth of cats for SkyClan, and rogues and kittypets would also be good. I don't expect to get all the cats I need this way, but I'm hoping of getting some... Thanks! **


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